Keith Winebrenner is sworn in as Beachwood's new chief of police

Keith Winebrenner takes the oath from Law Director Brian Reali as the new police chief of Beachwood.Jeff Piorkowski, special to Sun News

BEACHWOOD, Ohio -- For the first time in 17 years the city has sworn in a new chief of police.

Commander Keith A. Winebrenner, who had been serving as acting chief since March when former chief Mark Sechrist retired, officially took the helm of the 44-officer department at Monday's City Council meeting. Sechrist had been with the department for 37 years.

Winebrenner, 54, was tabbed as the next chief by Mayor Merle Gorden, who also serves as Beachwood's safety director.

"I'm not planning any big changes," Winebrenner said before his swearing in. "I'm still assessing things before any changes are made."

Winebrenner began his career with the Beachwood police as a patrol officer in 1990. Over the succeeding years, he has held the positions of detective, sergeant and lieutenant. He was named commander of the detective bureau in 2012.

A former U.S. Army military police officer, Winebrenner has earned certification as a master criminal investigator, among other qualifications.

"We have great leadership for the future, not only with Keith Winebrenner as chief, but also the other people who are working their way up the ranks," said Gorden.

Gorden asked Winebrenner to introduce his family after the swearing in. The chief's family includes a father who was an Ohio Highway Patrol officer, and two brothers who serve as police officers in Pepper Pike and Medina.

Winebrenner said he didn't believe he would face any particular challenges in terms of problems the department faces.

"We've experienced a lot of new construction in recent years and that has increased the volume of traffic, but the city has planned for that well," he said. "A lot of that construction has come in the (Chagrin) Highlands area. When I started here, those were just fields."

-- In other council news, legislation was approved for the purchase of three 2015 Ford Utility Police Interceptor vehicles, and two 2015 Ford Fusion vehicles. Finance Director David Pfaff said the money for the purchases -- $150,000-$180,000 -- has already been budgeted. The police department will use all the vehicles.

-- Council elected to delay to an unspecified time a vote on amendments to its law regarding youth curfews. Council President Fredric Goodman said he believed more discussion on the matter is needed.

Gorden said he had talked with the police chief about the issue.

"There is not a curfew problem in Beachwood, and we haven't had any," Gorden said.

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